Isaiah 9:12 (DBY)

Passage

the Syrians on the east, and the Philistines on the west; and they shall devour Israel with open mouth. For all this his anger is not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still.

Nearby Context

Isaiah 9:10 The bricks are fallen down, but we will build with hewn stones; the sycamore trees are cut down, but we will replace them with cedars.

Isaiah 9:11 And Jehovah will set up the adversaries of Rezin against him, and arm his enemies,

Isaiah 9:12 the Syrians on the east, and the Philistines on the west; and they shall devour Israel with open mouth. For all this his anger is not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still.

Isaiah 9:13 But the people turneth not unto him that smiteth them, and they do not seek Jehovah of hosts.

Isaiah 9:14 And Jehovah will cut off from Israel head and tail, palm-branch and rush, in one day:

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "syrians", "east", "philistines", "west", "shall", "devour", "israel", and "open". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "syrians" and "east", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 11's "And Jehovah will set up the adversaries..." into verse 13's "But the people turneth not unto him...", so "syrians" and "east" belong inside that flow. In Isaiah context, the local focus is the Holy One of Israel, judgment and restoration, the servant of the LORD, and Zion's hope.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "syrians" and "east" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.